# bbs-signature

Source: https://startwithidentity.com/glossary/bbs-signature/
Last updated: 2026-08-29
License: content by Start with Identity. Cite the source URL.

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A signature scheme that lets a holder reveal only a subset of the fields in a credential while keeping the issuer's single signature valid, without the issuer's involvement. It enables privacy-preserving selective disclosure and unlinkable presentations for verifiable credentials.

BBS matters because it moves selective disclosure from a workaround to a property of the signature itself. Alternatives either re-issue a credential per disclosure, which requires the issuer to be online and to learn where the credential is used, or hash-and-salt each field as SD-JWT does, which reveals which fields were withheld. BBS reveals only what is shown and produces unlinkable presentations, at the cost of newer cryptography and thinner library support.

See also: [selective disclosure](https://startwithidentity.com/glossary/selective-disclosure/), [zero-knowledge proof](https://startwithidentity.com/glossary/zero-knowledge-proof/), [verifiable credentials](https://startwithidentity.com/standards/verifiable-credentials/), [SD-JWT](https://startwithidentity.com/glossary/sd-jwt/)